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the international or national levels, or at the very core of each firm.
Therefore, the metrological organization could only comply with the
rules that make it possible to meet these needs, and in the modern day
to anticipate these needs; of course, this task falls to the metrologists
who intervene at the scientific, technical and industrial levels. Thus,
an intra-firm, national and international coherence of measurements is
achieved. In short, metrology is, and it must remain, a universal
language. It is easily understood that a universal language involves a
certain amount of dialogue between people from different ethnicity,
hence its elaboration may seem laborious. For a long time, talking of
quantities or units sounded more like a babel of languages than a
modern means of communication. From very early days, trade
required measuring instruments and thus standards. The need for
universal and unified measurements made it necessary to establish an
independent organization which would guarantee the fairness of
exchanges that were affected by deep-rooted economic, political and
social realities: localization of the exchanges, economic and political
interests, not to mention the various national habits and customs
which are the hereditary enemies of metrology. It needed powerful
triggers to change these customs.
The scientific developments of the 17th and 18th centuries
prepared the ground for the French Revolution to create the metric
system. In spite of political vicissitudes, the industrial developments
of the 19th century, which increased needs tenfold, accelerated the
process of establishing a metrological organization. It emerged from
concepts which will be studied later on in the chapter. It is interesting
to quote Lavoisier, who said that: “never has anything greater, simpler,
more coherent in all its parts come out of man’s hand.” Although the
essential notions of coherence and simplicity influenced the creation
of the metric system, it was not adopted in France, as the only and
compulsory system, until 1st January 1840. A statement made at that
time by the Minister for Commerce is still relevant today: “if man’s
needs are something permanent that cannot be modified by a law, his
habits are not, they are mere accidents that can be defeated and
dominated after more or less time, more or fewer efforts ...”
Expressing the real needs, and fighting poor practices, is one of
the missions of a metrology organization. The metric system medal,
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